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US air traffic controllers are increasingly seeking second jobs and calling in sick, as they remain on duty unpaid during the government shutdown, the transportation secretary has stated.

"These professionals are wearing thin," the official informed a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to personnel deficits.

Following the government shut down on October 1st, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were instructed to continue performing their jobs uncompensated.

But a number have been absent, causing airports to stop or slow their flight operations, which has exacerbated delays due to weather and other issues.

More than three thousand American flights were delayed on Sunday, and the secretary said he expects the situation to grow worse.

"I am seeing the pressure," he said in an discussion on Sunday Morning Futures, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to hear their worries directly.

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there searching, 'Should I drive Uber, can I secure an alternative of income to cover expenses?'" he added.

The secretary further mentioned that on Saturday 22 alerts at airfields indicated travel would be held up due to a lack of workers - among the peak after the closure began.

The American federal closure reached its 26th day on Sunday, making it the second most extended shutdown in the past.

Duffy has consistently cautioned that aviation regulators would slow down the number of aircraft in the sky if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

In his conversation, he declined to respond directly when questioned if it was secure to fly in the United States, and instead issued a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I need my staff concentrating on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at their households," the official said.

On that day, some planes were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to employee deficits, causing interruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the nation and among the most crowded in the globe, as well as additional travel extending north to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert went out at 8:45 AM local time on the weekend. Numerous trips were back on schedule before noon.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were postponed an mean of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airfield in the country, could encounter difficulties from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The agency advised travelers in California to consult carriers about revised departure times.

The situation comes ahead of the third match of the World Series, which is scheduled in LA on Monday evening, and about one month before the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak periods to travel by air in the United States.

Strain on US air travel contributed to ending a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. At the time, the halt had entered its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including aviator instruction.

It led several flight controllers to stay home on the same day on January 25, 2019, temporarily stopping travel at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

On that date, the former president, who at the time was in his initial presidency as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the federal closure after 35 days.